Runaway
by Birgit Staebler
Cosmo stood in front of the rather run-down building,
feeling like he should be far away from here. Very far. It had been a while
since he had been here. Well, not here exactly, but somewhere similar.
He drew a shaky breath and let his eyes roam over the two-story building
with its peeling plaster, the two broken windows, and the posters liberally
stuck to the old walls and door. Once upon a time, the building would have
been a charming brickstone beauty, and with an effort it might be again.
But now, it was nothing but an old house in a less than respectable part
of town. Music blared from the open door and out of the windows, teens
hung around, some of them smoking, some of them blearily watching others
play a game.
A shelter.
One of those trying to survive, asking for money through
donations, just hanging on out of desperation and dedication of the social
workers. There were better ones in others parts of Electro City, but they
were more official. Of course, they were cleaner, they offered help in
different ways, but this one here assured anonymity. And anonymity was
what she had been looking for.
Cosmo knew only too well. The first time he had run away,
when he had been barely nine, he had wanted a place to hide. No help, no
questions asked, just a bed to sleep in. The people from that time were
no different than today. They helped the boys and girls coming here, gave
them food and shelter, and offered medical assistance.
He sighed.
Back then he had believed to be on his own, fighting
for himself only, not accepting any help except for basic needs. Today
he realized how stupid he had been -- but also how desperate.
Cosmo stepped through the peeling brown door and into
the corridor behind. Loud music washed over him, cigarette smoke choked
him, and he was watched by a dozen kids of all ages. Pasty white faces,
angry and closed. Girls with make up that made them older than their teenage
years. Boys with tattoos and piercings. Somewhere, the sound of video games
could be heard. Cosmo squared his shoulders and waked past the hostile
faces. Not too long ago, he had been like them. Not long ago, he would
not have trusted anyone, would have joined a gang.... He grit his teeth.
He had been so lucky, so very, very lucky.
Thank you, Ace, he thought briefly. By god, thank you
for the help, for caring.....
A boy about his age strutted over to him, wearing a loud
T-shirt over a scrawny body, and
old jeans too big for his slender frame. Uncombed hair
hung into his eyes.
"You one of them social workers?" he asked with disdain
and
a lot of distrust in his voice.
"No." Cosmo almost had to laugh. Social worker? Did he
look old enough for that? "I'm a friend of Ulene's....."
He gave him a narrow-eyed look. "Ulene? The little red-head?
She's back there." He made a jerking gesture with his head. "She don't
want nobody there."
Cosmo just nodded and walked past him. The subconscious
anger the boy radiated was almost palpable. And so much like what he had
felt years ago. It took so much effort to be angry, Cosmo thought. And
they all thought they had a cause. Just like him back then. So much like
him.
He sighed and ignored the old feelings, making his way
into the back of the building. He passed a computer and another where a
TV was blaring, the noise of the TV fighting the din of the music box from
up front. Cosmo found Ulene out in the back yard, huddling on a wooden
bench, her gray jacket tightly wrapped around her. There was an unwashed
look to the jacket and Ulene looked not like her usual self. She stared
sightlessly ahead at the wall surrounding the yard. Old bikes, trash cans,
all the abandoned stuff, littered the yard. Cosmo hesitated for a moment,
then walked toward her.
Ulene had disappeared about a week ago. She had stopped
coming to the arcade for a while now and at school, she had dropped out
last week. Cosmo had been worried, calling home, but he had always gotten
the answering machine. He had tried hanging out in front of the house,
but Ulene had never come. Worry had grown and when one of the guys had
said something about her running away, Cosmo had heard alarm bells.
Ulene's red head came up as she heard his steps and her
dark eyes widened. Cosmo felt a smile rise on his lips, as it always did
lately. Ulene meant a lot to him. They had started out as friends, buddies,
pals. She was a computer crack just like him, she loved playing with graphics,
could beat him at games like Raptor X, and she was like him in one of the
special tutoring classes for the highly intelligent kids. Then there had
been more. Shyly holding hands at the movies, sharing ice cream, going
out without the others, and the kiss. Oh, yeah, the kiss. Cosmo felt his
lips tingle at the memory.
"Cosmo?" she stuttered.
"Hey," he called.
"What... what are you doing here?"
He sat down. "The question is, what are you doing here?"
She evaded his gaze, brightly red colored hair falling
into her eyes. He loved her hair. He knew it was dyed, but it fit her so
well. She probably had dark hair, judging from her milk chocolate colored
skin and the dark brown eyes, but the red was just cool.
"You ran away," Cosmo said bluntly.
"So what?" she challenged.
He sighed and looked at the dusty ground. "Your parents
are worried."
Ulene snorted in disgust. "My parents? They don't even
know I exist!"
"Why do you think?"
"You know parents! Dad works all over the globe, is never
home, and when he comes home, it's just for a change of clothes and then
he's off again. I don't even know what he looks like anymore! Mom just
cares about her gallery. She leaves early, comes home late, the dinner's
in the microwave..... All I get is my allowance on the kitchen table! I
don't know them anymore! They don't even know me! I bring home good grades
and it's nothing but a smile and maybe a nice word. Nothing else! I once
told them I had failed a class and you know what they said? Nothing!"
Tears threatened in her eyes and Cosmo inched closer.
"Your parents care," he tried.
He had never really met them. He had seen Ulene's mother,
a pretty Asian woman. He knew she worked at her own gallery, that she had
wealthy customers, that there was money to boot, but that was about it.
Of the father, he had only seen a picture once. Ulene was an only child,
she was bright, she was independent, but with fifteen, she still sought
recognition from her parents. Recognition she didn't get. Cosmo had sought
recognition from his father as well, but what he had gotten had been worse
than simple lack of attention. But teenagers wanted to be recognized for
their achievements, wanted their parents to be proud.
Cosmo smiled. He felt the same way when it came to Ace.
He wanted Ace to be proud of him, he worked hard, and he was happy each
time he got the recognition. Ace was different than his father, so very
different, but he was also not a typical parent. Nothing was typical about
Ace. Another smile.
"They don't care! They don't even know I exist!" Ulene
jumped up and glared at the junk, hands balled into fists. "Do you really
believe they miss me? No! I could stay out late and they wouldn't be able
to tell I'm away!"
"They do care," Cosmo said quietly.
She shook her head. "No. They have no idea I'm gone.
They think I'm hanging out with friends. Mom leaves too early to see me
in the morning, comes home after I'm in bed. And Dad won't be back home
till July." She scrubbed a hand over her eyes. "He's off in Japan or somewhere.
I'm better off here."
"You are not!" Cosmo snapped. "Nothing here can be better
than your own home where someone loves you!"
She stared at him. "What do you know?" she finally muttered.
"You have a happy life. You live with Ace Cooper. You don't have indifferent
parents."
Cosmo winced. It had been a problem in the beginning.
All the kids he hung out with saw only the fact that he lived with a famous
show star. No one knew anything about his past and Cosmo guarded it closely,
almost jealously. They had accepted him, but there had been clashes. Cosmo,
ward of Ace Cooper, money to spare, great life. It was a great life compared
to his existence, but it wasn't perfect. Now Ulene was drawing on the old
argument again.
"I haven't lived there all my life," he then pointed
out.
"Yeah, so what? He adopted you. Lucky shot. You're still
better off. You never had to worry."
"Wrong." He uttered it silently and Ulene shot him a
quizzical look.
"Come again?"
Cosmo met her brown eyes. "If not for Ace, I might be
here today." He gesture at the shelter. "Maybe even worse. Might be a junkie,
selling my body and soul, running with a gang, or making time in prison."
He shrugged slightly. "I know all about the streets and running away, Ulene.
It's not the fun and adventure it seems. It's much worse than almost anything."
The last was uttered quietly as Cosmo thought of his abusive father.
"I... I didn't know," she stuttered. "You were a runaway?"
He nodded. Ulene sat down next to him again. "Why?"
He inhaled deeply. "Various reasons. My father being
the main one." Cosmo fought down old demons. "I wish my parents would have
been like yours. Then it would have been bearable. Mom died early. I was
nine. My father...." He just couldn't get himself to call him 'Dad'. "He...
wasn't really a parent."
Ulene seemed to catch the meaning, even though the question
in her eyes stayed.
"I ran away often," Cosmo told her. "I did some things
I should not have. I even tried to get into a gang. I failed. Whenever
I was caught, they returned me home. It never got better. Always worse."
"How did you end up with Cooper?" Ulene wanted to know.
Cosmo smiled wryly. "Tried to steal from him. He caught
me." He shrugged.
"And then he decided to adopt you?" Ulene sputtered.
"Yeah, right! Fairy tale!"
In a way, Cosmo thought. It had been a fairy tale. He
hadn't believed it himself back then. "Maybe. It wasn't that easy and it
wasn't really all that much fun."
He hesitated, then looked at Ulene. She was his friend
and they were quite close, and he wanted to help her. But opening himself
up so completely.... What if she told the others? Then again, did he care?
He was past this. He had accepted his past and he knew where he stood with
Ace.
And Cosmo slowly related the story, the shooting, the
gang trying to kill him, his flight, Ace taking him in, caring for the
young runaway. And the guardianship. All the problems and difficulties
coming with that. All the happiness and the pain. When he fell silent,
he became aware of Ulene's hand holding his.
"I didn't know," she said slowly.
"I never told anyone. I didn't want to." He shrugged.
"You told me. Now." She squeezed his hand. "Thank you,
Cosmo." Ulene smiled.
Cosmo smiled as well, holding her hand tightly in his.
"Running away doesn't solve things," he then said slowly. "For me, it got
even worse. It nearly got me killed."
"But you were lucky. You met Cooper."
"Yeah, but it could have been so much worse. I know I
didn't want to go back to my father.... I'd never go back...." He shuddered.
Ulene leaned closer. "Did he beat you?" she asked softly.
Cosmo drew a shuddering breath. Damn! He mumbled something.
"My parents never beat me. They just... don't seem to
care. They are so cold. Take me for granted." She huddled against him.
"I'm sorry about your dad."
Cosmo shook his head. "Don't be. I'm not. If I never
see him again, it's too soon." He gazed at the shelter's back entrance,
listening to the loud music. "You can come to the Express with me if you
want."
Ulene was silent. "What about Cooper?"
"Ace is cool with that. No problem."
"You like him a lot."
The statement surprised him. Of course he liked Ace.
The magician had done a lot for him, more than anyone had ever done. Okay,
so there were foster kids who weren't all too thrilled about their parents,
but Ace was cool. Very cool.
"Sure," he said slowly.
"I mean, you are loyal to him. I see it whenever you
talk about him." Ulene smiled slightly. "That's great."
Many people were impressed by Aces appearance, sometimes
very intimidated, but Cosmo knew more about the magician than anyone, and
he was proud of it.
"Listen, if you want to stay for a night...." He blushed.
"I mean, in the guest room, of course."
Ulene laughed softly. "I don't know," she then said.
"I don't want you to stay here," Cosmo told her firmly.
"One week was enough," she confessed. "It's not exactly
as romantic as stories tell." She shivered.
"I know," he mumbled. "C'mon, Ulene. Lets go."
The got up together, Ulene keeping close to him. Cosmo
put an arm around her shoulders, feeling warmth course through him. He
wasn't much older than she, but when had he become so responsible? Ace
always teased him about his wild schemes, but then there was the serious
part of being Ace Cooper's assistant and partner. He took it all very seriously,
and this responsibility combined with his former life had let him grow
up faster. He had another perspective on things now. Cosmo wouldn't call
himself grown up. He was too much a teenager for it, but he knew about
things others didn't.
He ignored the kids around them and guided her to the
bike he had parked and secured outside. Some more kids were lingering there.
Ulene had her arms around his waist as they drove off
and her face was pressed against his back. Cosmo felt relief and worry
in one. Relief that Ulene had come with him, that she was okay, but he
was also worried about what might happen. Would she run away again? He
didn't really believe so, but the problem with the parents stayed. Still,
he would have preferred an ignorant parent to an abusive one.
Now he had Ace. The next best thing to a real father.
Cosmo smiled. Getting caught red-handed three years ago, trying to break
into Angel, had been the best thing that had ever happened to him. And
now he wanted to help Ulene realize what it meant to have parents who cared,
who didn't abuse their children, and Cosmo knew that with some effort,
he might just convince her.